pleco problems, HELP!!?

Question

i have a pleco in a 6 gallon tank, see? one of those dark brown vaccum catfish. he has kinda a finrot and he sometimes turns pale, i think its because of incorrect pH. please someone tell me an accurate way of keeping the pH correct for a pleco for a long time withoutthe use of chemicals. thank u!

Answer 1

Symptoms: Disintegrating fins that may be reduced to stumps, exposed fin rays, blood on edges of fins, reddened areas at base of fins, skin ulcers with gray or red margins, cloudy eyes.

Tail and fin rot appears to be a bacterial infection of the tail and/or fins and may be caused by generally poor conditions, bully, or fin nipping tankmates. If aquarium conditions are not good an infection can be caused from a simple injury to the fins/tail. Tuberculosis can lead to tail and fin rot. Basically, the tail and/or fins become frayed or lose color. Over time the affected area slowly breaks down.
First, attempt to ascertain the cause. Then treat accordingly. Also, treat the water or fish with antibiotics. If added to the water, use 20 - 30 mg per liter. If the fish is to be treated add an antibiotic to the food. With flake food, use about 1% of antibiotic and carefully mix it in. If you keep the fish hungry they should eagerly eat the mixture before the antibiotic dissipates. Antibiotics usually come in 250 mg capsules. If added to 25 grams of flake food, one capsule should be enough to treat dozens of fish. A good antibiotic is chloromycetin (chloramphenicol) or tetracycline. If you feed your fish frozen foods or chopped foods, try to use the same ratio with mixing. As a last resort add at most 10 mg per liter of water. Also, if unkempt conditions are the suspected cause, correct it.

Answer 2

If it is a common pleco then it could also be because that tank is very overstocked which can be causing more then just the ph to be off. Common plecos grow very large and need to be in a tank around 55 gallons. Most fish will adapt to a ph that is a little too high or too low then what it normally likes as long as it is stable. Baking soda can help keep the ph stable if it keeps jumping around, I don't remember how much to add so you would have to google that or someone else here can tell you.

Answer 3

It would help if you could say what the pH is now! Anyway its really not a good idea to muck around with the pH levels as it can be dangerous, fish will generally adapt to the pH of your tank. You should also check the level of other chemicals such as Nitrate, Nitrite and Ammonia. Finrot needs treatment with medication.